Delhi Polls: BJP Targets AAP’s Loyal Base Of Auto Drivers, Slum Clusters To Bridge 15% Vote Share Hole – News18
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Each the vote banks are early allies of the Aam Aadmi Celebration and BJP is hopeful that until freebies are introduced, they’re heading in the right direction to woo slum residents and auto drivers
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva engaged with auto drivers over tea on the Nizamuddin Railway Station on Wednesday, claiming Kejriwal didn’t fulfil primary guarantees. (X)
Forward of the 2025 Delhi elections, the Bharatiya Janata Celebration (BJP) is taking a leaf out of rival Aam Aadmi Celebration (AAP)’s playbook. Within the 2020 polls, the celebration’s vote share was 38.51 per cent, whereas that of the AAP was 53.57 per cent. The large hole of 15 per cent meant the BJP gained simply eight seats out of 70, making certain an AAP sweep with 62 seats.
Lower to December 2024, the BJP is actively attempting to win over two loyal bases of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to minimise the hole — auto drivers and slum dwellers.
DENT IN 93,000 FAMILIES’ VOTES
Auto drivers are thought-about conventional supporters of AAP since its anti-corruption motion when the car was used to disseminate anti-Congress messaging. When India Towards Corruption metamorphosed into AAP, auto drivers remained loyal to Kejriwal and the celebration reaped its political profit in successive polls.
There are an estimated 93,000 auto-rickshaws in Delhi, that are being counted as 93,000 households and their votes — a vote financial institution that BJP is aggressively making an attempt to win over sensing a distrust in opposition to AAP amongst a piece of auto drivers ever since Kejriwal’s alleged flamboyant life-style hit headlines. Kejriwal’s success in capturing this base very early was by figuring out himself as a commoner preventing the system.
Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva engaged with auto drivers over tea on the Nizamuddin Railway Station on Wednesday, claiming Kejriwal didn’t fulfil primary guarantees like auto stands or stopping the apply of rampant seizing of autos. “In 2014, Kejriwal made 10 guarantees to auto drivers. Nonetheless, neither had been these guarantees had been fulfilled, nor any efforts had been made by his authorities in direction of fulfilling them,” Sachdeva alleged.
On Monday too, Sachdeva addressed greater than 1,000 auto drivers from central and west districts of Delhi, explaining to them why Kejriwal had failed them. BJP insiders say even when the celebration is ready to swing 30-40 per cent of Delhi’s 93,000 auto drivers in direction of itself, it is going to assist BJP improve its vote share.
TARGET: WIN BACK 1,194 SLUMS
If auto drivers had been one in all AAP’s earliest allies, even earlier than they took the political plunge, votes throughout Delhi’s 1,194 slum clusters — often called jhuggi jhopri colonies — too have been steadfast of their help for the broom since an early stage.
Nonetheless, with Kejriwal’s ‘Frequent Man’ picture taking a extreme beating with allegations of irregularities over the alleged liquor rip-off and experiences of opulence on show within the title of renovation of his official residence, many residents of those slum clusters began feeling a disconnect from AAP. The BJP was fast to use it.
Celebration leaders stayed in a single day in 1,194 slum clusters throughout town to work together immediately with the residents and perceive their challenges. Through the in a single day keep, the BJP leaders dined with residents, preserving it as actual as potential. As an illustration, Sachdeva had a meal with slum dwellers as a part of the night time slum keep marketing campaign at Rajiv Camp in Jhilmil. He wasn’t alone. BJP’s nationwide normal secretary Dushyant Gautam and MP Ramvir Singh Bidhuri are amongst many who took half on this outreach.
BJP, underneath the Slum Enlargement Marketing campaign, has appointed slum-expanders or vistaraks and slum-caretakers who’re tasked to run the drive throughout Delhi, as soon as the leaders depart.
Sources say suggestions has additionally began pouring in. A serious concern amongst some slum dwellers has been whether or not their slums shall be destroyed after being deemed unlawful, significantly after chief minister Atishi held a press convention. Few different issues are well timed water provide, fumigation throughout monsoon and meals by the Delhi City Shelter Enchancment Board (DUSIB).
The BJP is hopeful that until some main freebie bulletins are made for the city poor earlier than ballot date declaration, they’re on the appropriate course to stake declare on two of Kejriwal’s most treasured bases.
